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April 3, 2008 http://www.thecarconnection.com/fullreview/acura_cl_2001

  Marc K. Stengel
EditorMarc K. Stengel

How to explain the image-burnishing that's going on at Acura lately? Conceived originally as a premium, up-market reiteration of Honda's ubiquitous econocars, Acura Division allowed its radiance to be eclipsed by the even more luxury-baiting pretensions of Toyota's Lexus and Nissan's Infiniti divisions.

This is not to disparage the technical sophistication and manufacturing quality on which Acura's reputation justifiably rests. But whereas its rivals rendered themselves into legitimate contenders against Mercedes-Benz and BMW, Acura until lately seemed to settle for something less — for beating up on Buick, say.

But now the new 2001 Acura 3.2CL sport coupe has rolled out onto the fashion runway, and it is apparent that Acura's bosses are serious about yanking the division's image up by a quantum or two. Far from the mere makeover of a Honda Accord coupe that its predecessors turned out to be (the 3.0CL and 2.3CL, whose last appearances were for the 1999 model year), the new CL is a genuine start-over-from-scratch effort to shake up the status quo in a touring coupe category dominated by such chi-chi contenders as M-B's CLK320, BMW's 328Ci, and even Volvo's C70.

Right off the bat, the 3.2CL benefits from dramatic advances in automotive gene therapy. Its basic platform is derived from the new-for-'99 Acura TL sedan, whose powerful combination of performance, features, and price has more or less stunned the automotive world for the last two years. Both the four-door TL and the two-door CL are assembled in Ohio, and both are designed in and for the U.S. market. But the similarities mostly end right there. Whereas the TL sedan represents a lot of bang for the buck for the accountant and broker set, the 2001 CL is all about giving the no-compromise driving aficionado just about as much unfettered bang as he or she can handle.

How to explain the image-burnishing that's going on at Acura lately? Conceived originally as a premium, up-market reiteration of Honda's ubiquitous econocars, Acura Division allowed its radiance to be eclipsed by the even more luxury-baiting pretensions of Toyota's Lexus and Nissan's Infiniti divisions. This is not to disparage the technical sophistication and manufacturing quality on which Acura's reputation justifiably rests. But whereas its rivals rendered themselves into legitimate contenders against Mercedes-Benz and BMW, Acura until lately seemed to settle for something less — for beating up on Buick, say. But now the new 2001 Acura 3.2CL sport coupe has rolled out onto the fashion runway, and it is apparent that Acura's bosses are serious about yanking the division's image up by a quantum or two. Far from the mere makeover of a Honda Accord coupe that its predecessors turned out to be (the 3.0CL and 2.3CL, whose last appearances were for the 1999 model year), the new CL is a genuine start-over-from-scratch effort to shake up the status quo in a touring coupe category dominated by such chi-chi contenders as M-B's CLK320, BMW's 328Ci, and even Volvo's C70. Right off the bat, the 3.2CL benefits from dramatic advances in automotive gene therapy. Its basic platform is derived from the new-for-'99 Acura TL sedan, whose powerful combination of performance, features, and price has more or less stunned the automotive world for the last two years. Both the four-door TL and the two-door CL are assembled in Ohio, and both are designed in and for the U.S. market. But the similarities mostly end right there. Whereas the TL sedan represents a lot of bang for the buck for the accountant and broker set, the 2001 CL is all about giving the no-compromise driving aficionado just about as much unfettered bang as he or she can handle. How to explain the image-burnishing that's going on at Acura lately? Conceived originally as a premium, up-market reiteration of Honda's ubiquitous econocars, Acura Division allowed its radiance to be eclipsed by the even more luxury-baiting pretensions of Toyota's Lexus and ...